1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally in the field of cooking appliances, and, more particularly, is in the field of rotisseries for built-in ovens and for other ovens having limited horizontal dimensions.
2. Description of the Related Art
A rotisserie is a cooking system in which meat skewered on a spit is rotated over or proximate to a flame or other heat source to cook the meat evenly in its own juices. All sides of the meat may be accessed to add basting as needed while the meat is cooking.
Rotisseries are available as stand-alone appliances. Because stand-alone rotisseries require storage space when not in use, many cooks choose to add a rotisserie to an existing grill or oven as a removable accessory. When the rotisserie is not being used, the rotisserie is removed, cleaned and stored. Typically, a rotisserie is turned by a small electric motor or other source of rotational power. In a typical rotisserie having a horizontal spit, the motor is located on the outside of one sidewall of the grill or oven enclosure so that the motor is not subjected to the heat within the grill or oven enclosure. When the spit is inserted in the grill or oven enclosure, an extended portion of the spit passes through an opening in the side of the grill or the side of the oven and engages the motor.
Although accessory rotisseries are available for grills and for some ovens in free-standing ranges (oven/cooktop combinations), such rotisseries are not available for built-in ovens (e.g., ovens configured to fit into kitchen cabinetry) or for most free-standing ranges. Built-in ovens generally have a form factor selected to provide the maximum width of the inner dimensions of the oven enclosure for a given cabinet width. Accordingly, little or no space is available to position a typical rotisserie motor between the outer sidewall of the oven enclosure and the inside wall of the kitchen cabinet. Reducing the inner dimensions of the oven cavity is not an option in most cases since ovens with smaller inside dimensions are not well-received by consumers. Increasing the cabinet width is also not an option in most cases since kitchen cabinets are generally available in a limited number of conventional widths. Although a custom cabinet could be constructed to accommodate the external motor, the resulting cabinet with a considerably larger border alongside the oven enclosure would not be aesthetically acceptable. In some cases, additional space is not available for wider cabinets. A similar issue arises for ovens in free-standing ranges since the additional width required for the side-mounted rotisserie motor either increases the width of the free-standing range or reduces the width of the oven cavity in the free-standing range.